Some Things Never Change
by whitestreakedhair
Summary: Had to re-post because I'm stupid and forgot my password to both here and hotmail... *shakes head sadly* More chapters up now!!
1. Chapter One

Title: Some Things Never Change  
  
Author: WhiteStreakedHair  
  
Summary: A L/M fic. Logan's back from his three year long search for his past, but not with much more than he left with. He comes back to the mansion and finds that, no matter how many things are different now - Rogue's growing up and having a boyfriend, the Professor offering him a job, and a new addition to the X-MEN team - some things just never change.   
  
Rating: R, for language, and possible mild sexual stuff in later chapters… much later chapters, I'm thinking.  
  
Pairings: Logan/Marie, Marie/Bobby (not for long), Scott/Jean, Kurt/Ororo (later on), John/Kitty, Bobby/Jubilee (also later on)  
  
Author's Note: The comic books have always been a little too confusing to me, so I'm sticking to the movies for the basis of my fan fiction. My apologies to all you die-hard Marvel Comic people. Don't burn me too bad.  
  
Disclaimer: As much as I would absolutely love to own Logan, I have to admit that I don't. I don't own any thing else, either, except this POS laptop I'm typing on now.  
  
Reviews: Yes, please.  
  
Chapter One  
  
(A/N: This story is set at the beginning of X2, when Logan comes back to the mansion. I've never been a fan of the whole 'Jean being a slut' thing, so, in this story, Logan never liked her, she never sort of liked him… none of that. But, I love the whole tension between Logan and Scott, so that's still there. Oh, yeah. I also made it so that, even though it's been a while since Logan left, when he comes back, Rogue's seventeen. So, technically, she was like, fourteen when she met him at the bar. She just has to be still sort of young to really fit the story I think. And, also, possible spoilers for X2. Just a warning. Enjoy. Don't forget to R/R, please.)  
  
Rogue:  
  
Bobby was in the middle of telling me he loved me, for the first time, when I heard it. I whipped my head around and tried to look out the window, but, of course, the huge tree planted right outside the windowsill kind of obstructed my view. I didn't really need to see to know, anyway. I knew what the sound of a motorcycle pulling in meant. Logan was back.   
  
I jumped up excitedly, and Bobby gave up trying to talk to me. I got to the foyer just as he walked in the door, Bobby trailing slowly behind me. He was probably upset that he'd been trying to talk to me and I'd totally tuned him out, but I really didn't care at the moment. I'd just heard the sound I'd been waiting three years to hear, and Bobby's conversation was just going to have to wait until I had my little, long awaited reunion. I gave Logan a hug, and to my surprise, he picked me up and spun me around before he released me.   
  
I tried to say, "Welcome back," but the words caught in my throat. Seeing him again made all the sadness and loneliness (despite Bobby's nice but sort of boring company) I'd felt for the past three years come rushing back to the front of my mind. I made an inaudible noise, then cleared my throat, and said a bit shakily, "Nice to have you home again, Logan."  
  
He smiled. It was one of those real smiles, which he never had all that often. And all the stuff I'd told myself, about how it was stupid to have a crush on him because he was too old, too tough, and no way in Hell the least bit interested in me, flew out the window. When he grinned like that, I forgot he'd been gone three years, I forgot my boyfriend was standing right behind me… I forgot everything and my heart skipped a few beats.   
  
I guess some things never change.  
  
"Nice to be back, Kid," he said. "And who's this?" He nodded to Bobby, who now had his arm possessively placed on my shoulders.  
  
"This is Bobby," I said, in a sort of offhand way, which I felt guilty for later. "Bobby, this is Logan. Bobby's my-"  
  
"Boyfriend," he cut me off, puffing out his chest a bit. I fought to keep the giggles in. What, he actually thought Logan was a threat to him? I mean, he would have been, had he been interested in me, which I knew he wasn't. * sigh * Bobby held out his hand for Logan to shake. When he did, he froze it a little bit, like a stupid macho guy. Now, this should have been attractive, or at least a little bit cute, but for some, odd reason, it wasn't. In fact, it kind of annoyed me.   
  
Logan raised an eyebrow (which didn't help my already fast beating heart slow down at all), looking at his hand curiously. He flexed it slowly as it defrosted.   
  
"My friends call me Ice Man," Bobby said, his chest still stuck out like a rooster.   
  
"Ice Man, huh?" Logan asked, the sides of his mouth twitching in a suppressed smirk. "Well, Ice Man, can I talk to you for a minute? You know, man to man?"  
  
Bobby nodded, and he and Logan stepped off to the side. I couldn't hear what they were saying, but I had a pretty good idea. Knowing this should have made me angry, this Logan trying to freak out my boyfriend thing, I couldn't help but find it quite amusing. I actually almost burst out laughing at the look on Bobby's face when Logan suddenly whipped out his claws, in the middle of the conversation, and held them up so they lightly brushed Bobby's neck. Then, as suddenly as they had appeared, they retracted back into his skin. He smiled at Bobby in a nice, friendly, totally fake way. He said something else, Bobby nodded very quickly, and they both walked back over to me.   
  
I raised an eyebrow at Logan in suspicion. That was only one of his habits I'd accidentally picked up since that night at Liberty Island. Even after his powers wore off, they wouldn't go away. Not that I minded. I was about to ask him to tell Bobby that he was, I hope, joking around, but Bobby started tugging on my arm.   
  
"Hey, Rogue," he said, his voice showing the evidence of a slight tremor. Aw. Logan had scared him pretty bad. I wanted to find out what he said. "We're going to be late for that… that thing. Remember?" He looked at me pleadingly. I decided to play along.  
  
"Oh, dangit, you're right, Bobby," I said, turning to Logan. "Sorry, Logan. I'll have to talk to you later, ok?" I winked at him.  
  
He nodded, still suppressing a smirk.   
  
I let Bobby drag me away, thinking of a good way to ask him about what bull shit Logan had told him, without hurting his delicate, male pride any more than was necessary… or amusing. 


	2. Chapter Two

Chapter Two  
  
Logan:  
  
I was standing there, in sort of a trance, watching her go, when Ororo broke through my train of thought.  
  
"Well, well, well. Look who's back," she said, coming down the stairs toward me. "And just in time, too." She came up and hugged me. "Welcome back, Logan."  
  
I smiled. "Thanks." Then, I looked at her suspiciously. "Just in time for what?"  
  
"We need a baby-sitter," Jean answered before Ororo could. Now she was coming down the stairs, and was probably going to hug me, too. Was everybody in this damn mansion going to give me a hug? I soon saw that the answer was yes. I scowled inwardly. I didn't enjoy hugs all that much. Then, remembering how Rogue hugged me just moments before, I altered my opinion slightly. I didn't enjoy most people's hugs all that much.   
  
"A baby-sitter for who?" I asked, not liking the sound of this at all. What did I look like, that Nanny person with the horrible, nasal voice from that annoying TV show?  
  
"For the mansion," Jean answered. "Ororo and I are going to Boston tonight in Blackbird, to see if we can bring back that attempted White House assassin."  
  
"So it was a mutant?" I asked, curious. I hadn't watched much TV on my adventure, and what I did see came from TVs in bars.   
  
They both nodded.   
  
"So, we're going to need you to watch the kids for tonight," Ororo said. "Do you think you can handle that, Logan?"  
  
I shrugged. "Like I have a choice."  
  
They turned to go, and Scott met them at the door. He saw me, and his mouth, which had been curved upward in a smile, twitched downward slightly. Nice to see you, too, Scooter, I thought. He quickly recovered and said, "Back, Logan? Did you find what you were looking for?"  
  
I shrugged again. "A little bit, I guess." I threw him the keys to his motorcycle. "I think your bike needs some gas."   
  
He caught them and said, "Thanks," sarcastically, before turning and leaving. All alone in the foyer again, I decided to go up to my room and start unpacking.   
  
I was surprised at how good I felt, throwing my old, falling-apart duffel bag on the floor and stretching out on the bed for the first time in three years. I hadn't realized how much I'd missed the place. I was still tired from driving most of the day, so I turned over on my stomach, planning on taking a nap before dinner. When I did, with my face was pressed against the mattress, I noticed something odd. I sat up, sniffing the air. Rogue's scent was all over the room. And I mean, all over, especially on the bed, and really strong, like she'd been in here a lot. Why would Rogue come in my room so much? I asked myself. Then, I smelled something else very familiar. Cigar smoke. I went over to my dresser, and pulled open the bottom drawer, where I'd accidentally left a large stash of cigars when I'd left. Well, that stash was a lot smaller from what I remembered. Rogue? Smoking cigars? It didn't make sense. I shrugged, puzzled. I sat on the edge of the bed, thinking, about nothing in particular, for a long time. I decided to skip the nap and start unpacking, which would take me all of five minutes.   
  
I was nearing the end of those five minutes when someone knocked on my door. I knew it was Rogue, because I'd heard her walk down the hall. The sound of her familiar shuffle made me happy. I frowned. Why am I thinking like this? I thought angrily. She's Rogue, dammit. I pushed the irking thoughts out of my head and said, "It's open."  
  
She came inside and watched me finish putting socks in my dresser drawer. When I turned around, she said, "Didn't get to talk to you that much before, so just thought I'd come in and talk to you now."   
  
I nodded. "Has Ice Man recovered from our little talk?" I grinned when she giggled.   
  
"He's still a little scared. I told him you must have been just joking around with him, but he's still sort of freaked," she stopped giggling. "I missed you."  
  
"I missed you, too, Kid," I said. Remembering my recent discovery, I put my hands in my pockets and said nonchalantly, "You wouldn't know where all my cigars have gone, would you?"  
  
She blushed and looked away. "Um, no. Why would I now about that?"  
  
I shrugged. "Well, you've been in here a lot."  
  
She looked at me sharply. "How would you know that?"  
  
"You're scents all over this place, Kid," I said, looking at her curiously. I wanted to ask her why, but decided against it when she blushed again. I looked at her, cocking my head to side. She'd grown up a lot in the three years I'd been away, soul-searching, or whatever the Hell it was called. Perhaps she wasn't a kid anymore.   
  
She saw me staring at her thoughtfully, so I quickly looked at the floor. "So, you and Bobby," I asked, curiously. "How do you… you know…"  
  
She giggled again. "We're kind of still working on it, actually." She frowned. "I feel bad sometimes, you know, because I know he wants to kiss me, but he can't. I told him to give it up and find someone he could actually be with, but he said he didn't want to. He'll probably change his mind sooner or later."   
  
I was surprised to see that she didn't seem too upset at that last prospect.   
  
"He's a really nice guy," she said, looking at me, obviously silently asking my opinion.   
  
I shrugged. "Looks kind of prissy to me, but I suppose he's all right."  
  
She smiled. "Yeah, he is." 


	3. Chapter Three

Chapter Three  
  
Rogue:   
  
It was nice, sitting there talking to him. It felt kind of odd, to see him back in his room after he'd been gone for a while, but at the same time, it felt absolutely right. The room had been incomplete without him. I hadn't really thought about what I would tell him, when he came back and found a lot of his cigars gone. I guess I'd been trying not to get my hopes up in case, for one reason or another, as everyone loved to remind me, he might not come back… although I knew he would. He'd promised.   
  
That reminded me… I reached up and unfastened the chain around my neck, taking the dog tags in my hand. My neck felt oddly light without it. I hadn't taken the chain off since the day I'd first put it on. "Here. You said you'd be back for it."  
  
He took the chain from my hand slowly, looking at it. "Thanks." He put it on. He was about to say something else, when he jumped, startled. He shook his head, cursing under his breath. "Going to have to get used to the Professor popping in and out of people's heads whenever he wants to, once again." He looked at me. "Professor wants to see me for something."  
  
I nodded and got up. "Ok. See you at dinner." I walked out into the hallway, him following me. I headed one way, to my room, and he went the other, towards the Professor's office. I wondered what he wanted him for. Probably to welcome him home. I opened the door to the room I shared with my two best friends, Kitty, also known as Shadowcat, and Jubilee, or Jubes, as we called her most of the time. They immediately bombarded me with questions.   
  
"Is he really back?"  
  
"What did you guys talk about?"  
  
"Does he look any different?"  
  
"Does he have a girlfriend?"  
  
I looked at Jubilee in surprise at the last question, and crossed my arms over my chest. "What, are you interested or something?" I noticed my voice had taken a jealous edge.   
  
She shrugged. "It's no secret that he's gorgeous. But, no, not really. Just curious. You never know, he may have picked up some broad on the road or something."  
  
I shook my head. "I don't think so. We didn't talk about anything important, really. He asked me if Bobby was still wiggin' about that talk he had with him. Bobby told me what he said. It was so funny. Logan told him that if he ever hurt me, he'd gut him, so that the whole mansion could see his intestines."  
  
Kitty and Jubilee paled, and looked at me like I was crazy for giggling.   
  
"What?" I asked, confused.  
  
"Rogue, that's not funny," Kitty said shakily. "That would be horrible, to be cut open like a dead fish in front of all your friends and stuff."  
  
I sighed. "Ya'll gotta know he was just joking. Oh, come on. Logan would never do anything like that." I thought about what I'd just said. Would he do something like that? Probably. Bobby better not make me cry, I thought, smiling.   
  
"Whatever you say, Rogue," Jubilee said, not sounding convinced. "He looks dangerous to me. Kind of scary, too. Gorgeous though. Absolutely gorgeous."  
  
I laughed. "You're so weird, Jubes." You're such a hypocrite, Marie, I told myself. Like you haven't thought the same exact thing millions of times.   
  
Jubilee seemed to be thinking the same exact thing. "Oh, yeah, like that thought's never crossed your mind, Rogue. And don't lie to me, chica. I've seen the way you look at the picture you have of him."  
  
I blushed a brilliant shade of crimson. Luckily, John knocked on the door then, breaking off any further conversation. I thought they were so cute… John and Kitty, I mean. She was so innocent and nice, and he was so… juvenile delinquentish. It was cool, though, the way they balanced one another out.   
  
"Ladies," John asked, grinning. "Your humble escorts await to accompany you to the dinner table."  
  
"Once again, Jubilee is the freaking fifth wheel," Jubilee mumbled, sighing. She was kidding. She was way too exciting and into things to ever be a fifth wheel. 


	4. Chapter Four

Chapter Four  
  
Logan:   
  
"You want me to be a what?" I asked, laughing disbelievingly. For a guy who wasn't big on jokes, the Professor had pulled a pretty good one this time.   
  
"A teacher, Logan," said Charles, a hint of annoyance in his voice. He apparently wasn't joking. "We've been in need of a combat teacher for a while, but I've never been able to find someone quite suitable for the position. I think you'd be perfect."  
  
I stared at him in disbelief. The Professor was offering me a job. A teaching job. I shrugged. "All right. I'll try it out. What do I have to do?"  
  
"Teach," Charles said sarcastically.  
  
Now he gets the sense of humor, I thought. And a dry one at that. Fantastic.   
  
"Teach the students about combat. Show each child how they can use their powers for confrontation and defense purposes," he said. "I don't think you'll have any trouble teaching them street fighting, either." He smiled. "Fighting seems to be your line of work. You'll forgive me, but I don't have a cage on hand."  
  
I sneered at him for the allusion to my past. Like I needed reminding. Then, I smiled. I'd met Rogue at a bar where I'd been cage fighting. For the money, of course. Not that I liked the feeling of my fist meeting someone's face. Not at all. Yeah, she'd walked in there, and stood out immediately, because she smelled so… innocent. Not a common scent in a bar. I'd been interested in her at once, just because she was so different. It seemed like such a long time ago since she'd hitched a ride with me that night…  
  
The smile faded from Charles face. "Logan…"  
  
I looked up at him, snapped back to present, and knew what he was going to say. "I know, Professor. I don't know what's wrong with me. I'm dealing with it, all right? I don't need someone telling to keep my hormones in check, like I'm some damn teenager." It kind of pissed me off, him going into my head whenever he thought he wanted to, but I guess he only did it when he thought it was necessary. Like just now.   
  
Charles sighed, and the frown didn't go away. "It isn't your fault if your feelings toward Rogue aren't as platonic as they once were. I'm just advising you to be careful."   
  
I growled. Like I didn't know all of this already.   
  
Charles ignored it. "It's time for dinner. I believe we're having steak tonight."  
  
The anger in me subsided a little. I loved steak. Yeah, yeah, I know. Big surprise. "Steak?" 


	5. Chapter Five

Chapter Five  
  
(A/N: This chapter is going to be a bit longer than the ones before, just because I think I have to do a lot of the next stuff that happens in Rogue's POV, because it's mainly happening to her… just wanted to tell you.)  
  
Rogue:   
  
Bobby intertwined his fingers with my gloved ones underneath the table. He's so nervous that's Logan's going to grab me and start kissing me or something, I thought, annoyed. Then, I blushed at the thought. Not that I would mind. Then, I felt guilty for feeling that way, when my sweet, adorable boyfriend was sitting right beside me, clasping my hand. It was wrong, to have feelings for Logan when I was with Bobby. Not that they would do any harm, since Logan was never going to find out that I liked him as anything more than a friend… or brother… or whatever he thought I liked him as. I decided to try to shove all those evil thoughts out of my mind, and focus on how cute Bobby was, especially when we were sitting on the couch together, watching a movie or having a thumb war. The only problem with the images I was conjuring up, was that Bobby wasn't always the one on the couch.  
  
I must have shaken my head in frustration, because Bobby asked, "Is something wrong, Rogue?"  
  
"No," I said, smiling. "Why would there be?"  
  
He shrugged. "Never mind." He went back to his steak, but gave my hand an extra squeeze.   
  
Just then, I sensed the Professor's eyes on me. I turned to the other end of the table, where he was sitting with the teachers, and saw I was right. He was frowning, not angrily, but, it looked like, sadly. He saw me looking at him and went back to talking to Jean.   
  
Did he see what I was thinking? I wondered, biting my lip nervously. Well, if he did, he has no reason to tell Logan, I reasoned, and I went back to my steak, also, but not before I flashed Logan a smile, because he had glanced at me from the teacher's end of the table, too.   
  
Back in the room that night, Kitty and Jubilee were having a discussion about whether or not the old rule about no white after Labor Day was still in tact. I sighed. I'd never met two girls more into fashion than they were. Around eleven, they finally shut up, but even after that, I couldn't sleep. I sighed. I always had trouble sleeping. At 12'35, I decided to give it up and do what I normally did when I couldn't sleep: go to Logan's room. Then, I realized, when I was halfway there, I couldn't do that, because Logan was back. I grinned. So, I decided to head for the kitchen, feeling kind of down, because my hopes of having a cigar were dashed. They're bad for you anyway, I told myself sternly. And you probably look like an idiot smoking them, too. What kind of teenage girl smokes freaking cigars? I asked myself, giggling silently. One that's been brought back to life by a guy that does, I guess. Of course, smoking cigars wasn't the only unhealthy addiction I'd acquired. I didn't find beer as repulsive as I had when I tasted it when I was eleven. Now… it was kind of good. Really good.   
  
I sat down at the island after I'd gotten the chocolate tub out of the freezer and a large spoon out the silverware drawer, and dug in. I'd eaten about five huge spoonfuls of ice cream when I heard someone coming down the hall. Probably someone else who can't sleep, I thought. It was sort of irritating. I wanted to be alone at the moment. I changed my mind immediately when I saw who it was.   
  
"What are you doing up so late, Kid?" Logan asked, coming into the kitchen.  
  
I shrugged. "I could ask you the same thing."  
  
"Well, you have to answer and I don't," he said. "So, tell me."  
  
I sighed. I wanted so bad to find it annoying when he got all brotherly like that, but I just couldn't. "Couldn't sleep. I've had trouble sleeping for a long time."  
  
"So, this is what you do when you can't sleep?" he asked, not sounding convinced. "You come in here and eat chocolate ice cream?"  
  
I shrugged. "Sometimes." I could smell the cigar smoke on him from here, and that really didn't help my craving at the moment. My hands started shaking involuntarily, and I didn't even know until the spoon starting hitting the table and making a noise. The harder I tried to make them stop, the more they shook.   
  
"And what do you do other times?" he asked, but he already knew the answer.  
  
I didn't meet his gaze. I was pretty sure he'd be mad. "It's all your fault, you know. I never smoked them before Liberty Island. Now it's just like, sometimes, I just have to have one, or, this happens." I indicated my shaking hands. "I thought maybe it's go away, but it hasn't."  
  
He crossed his arms over his chest. "I'm sorry, Kid. I never meant to make you a smoker. That's unhealthy, you know. Causes lung disease and all kinds of other gross stuff."  
  
I nodded. "Yeah, but it beats dying in a machine Magneto built." I finally looked up at him. He didn't seem mad. Get ready for some major withdrawal, though, I told myself. He's never going to let you smoke now that he knows.   
  
He opened the fridge. "Of course, they wouldn't have beer, it's a school."   
  
"Bottom drawer, in the very back," I said, before I realized it. I covered my hand with my mouth. No way was he going to let this slide.  
  
He turned around slowly, eyebrow raised. "What did you say?"  
  
I didn't answer. I looked down at my ice cream, but, suddenly, I wasn't so hungry any more.   
  
He came over to the island and sat down across from me. "Kid, have you been drinking? Tell me."  
  
I nodded. "Not a lot, though," I said quickly. "Just sometimes… when I felt really sad."  
  
He frowned. "Why would you feel like that."  
  
I looked up at him. "Like you have to ask."  
  
He looked confused for a minute, and then he understood what I was saying. "Look, Kid… Rogue, I mean. I'm sorry that I left. Sorry that I took so long. Three years… and what did it get me? Nothing but an abandoned concrete building that's falling apart and absolutely no answers.   
  
"Don't be sorry for that, Logan," I said quickly. "You had to go do that. It would have been stupid not to try and go look. I'm just a silly little girl, I guess." I tried to smile, but it didn't work out very well. A tear ended up sliding down my cheek and into the ice cream, which was now starting to slowly melt. I put the top back on and got up to put it back in the freezer. I put the spoon in the sink, then turned around. "Well, I guess I'll go to bed now."  
  
"Me, too," he said, standing up. "I'll walk you to your room, if you want."  
  
I shrugged. "Ok." We both tried to go out the doorway at the same time, and collided into each other. I stepped on his foot, and quickly apologized. Or, started to, anyway. "Ow! Oh, so-" I stopped mid sentence, suddenly feeling very faint. I felt my face pale.  
  
"What's the matter, Kid?" Logan asked, worried.  
  
I looked at him, disbelief on my face. I looked down. He wasn't wearing shoes. Neither was I. I took my glove off my left arm and grabbed his hand with my bare one. Nothing happened. No pain, no memories of his… no anything. It was just like I was holding his hand. My faint feeling became stronger with shock. "Oh, my Gosh…"  
  
I must have stumbled, because he caught me. Then, it dawned on him. "But… you're not… what's happening?"  
  
"I don't know," I said, weakly. "Do you think my power's gone?" Fear flooded me. Sure, I was always thinking about how different life would be if I could touch people, how much better it could be… but had I really meant it? Did I really want my mutation to go away? What if it had? I'd be a normal human again… I didn't know if that was good or bad.   
  
"Holy shit," Logan said. He seemed to be in disbelief himself. "You're not wearing gloves. My skin is touching yours, and nothing's happening." He looked at me, and seemed to pull himself together. "I think we're going to have to wake up Doc."  
  
I nodded, still feeling a bit off. I didn't let go of his hand, half because I wanted to make sure this wasn't some fluke, that this was really for real, and half because I liked the feel of his hand against mine, without the glove. His hand was rough, which seemed fitting, but I'd just never really noticed before. It felt nice.  
  
We walked down the hallway towards Scott and Jean's room. He was about to barge right in, when I said, "Um, Logan. Isn't Jean gone with Storm to Boston?"  
  
"Dammit," he said. "Well, Scott's still here, right? Wait, he can't be, or they wouldn't have needed me to baby-sit."  
  
I cocked an eyebrow. "Baby-sit? You?" I giggled. "The Professor and him went to visit Magneto in his plastic prison thing," I said. "Jubilee heard Storm telling Jean."  
  
He cursed again. "So what the Hell are you supposed to do? This could be life threatening for all we know. I mean, what possible reason could your powers be fading away for, unless you're dying or something?"  
  
"Oh, gee, that the most comforting thing I've ever heard in my entire life," I said, my voice dripping sarcasm. I glared at him. "Let's try to think of some other logical, but less morbid, reasons, please."  
  
He frowned in concentration. "Well, am I the first person you've touched? I mean, did you just now start being able to touch people?"  
  
I shrugged. "I don't know. I've always just worn the gloves. This could have been going on for a long time, and I just didn't know it."   
  
He sighed. "Ok… what are we going to do. All right. Here's an idea. Maybe it's not you. Maybe it's me. Let's go to your room, and see if you can touch one of your friends."  
  
I frowned. "I might hurt them, Logan."  
  
He rolled his eyes. "Well, they can just get over it. This is important." He pulled me by my hand all the way to the other end of the hallway. He didn't bother knocking on my door. He turned on the lights and shut the door behind him.   
  
Jubilee sat up in bed, rubbing her eyes. "What the hell? Rogue? What's Wolverine doing in here?" She grinned mischievously. "You know, this wouldn't look great, if someone walked in."  
  
He growled, as Jubilee, Kitty, and me giggled. She was right. Then, remembering what we were in there for, I went up to Kitty.   
  
"Do you mind if I touch you really quick?" I asked, trying to make it sound as normal as I possibly could, but I don't think I succeeded.  
  
"Why?" she asked, looking at me suspiciously. "You mean without your gloves? You'll hurt me."  
  
"That's what we're making sure of," Logan said, giving her a look that dared her to not allow me to touch her. "Come on. Some people would like to sleep tonight, you know. Those of us who do sleep." 


	6. Chapter Six

Chapter Six

Logan:

I watched her touch Kitty's arm lightly, then immediately jump back. She looked at me, confused and worried. "What's this supposed to mean?"

I shrugged. "No clue, Kid." I rubbed my temple. "Why would you be able to touch me and not anyone else?" I looked up at her suddenly. "Maybe Liberty Island had something to do with it."

She cocked an eyebrow. "You think? I mean... would that have made you immune or something? I shouldn't have... should it?"

I shrugged again. "I guess we're just going to have to wait until Doc gets home. It's time for you girls to get to bed. I'm supposed to be baby-sitting. Last time I checked, a baby-sitter wasn't supposed to let the children stay up past their bed times." I walked over to the door and paused at the light switch. "Good night, ladies," I said, in my best pansy voice, which, I am proud to say, wasn't very convincing. I shut the door behind me and headed back to my room.

'Why am I even attempting to sleep?' I thought wearily. I couldn't get her out of my head. Well, not her exactly. Her touch. The way her hand felt inside mine... 'Gee, Logan, you're not turning into a pansy at all, are you?' I thought sarcastically. 'No, you're turning into a damn pedophile.' I grimaced. Talking and answering yourself is definitely not an indicator or good mental health. It was just that... whenever I'd start thinking about Rogue... like that... I would always just tell myself, 'It's no point, because besides the fact that you're like a brother to her, you couldn't touch her, anyway.' Now... I couldn't fall back on that. And it scared me. I needed something there to hold me back. Without it... 

I shook my head and turned over. 'You're over-analyzing things, Logan. Maybe things won't be all that different.' I didn't know if that thought consoled me or just made me feel worse.

The next day was a Saturday, so I didn't feel the need to get up at any specific time. Charles' voice woke me up around 9'00, calling a 'faculty meeting.' 

"Great," I mumbled groggily. "What could he possibly want to talk about?"

I was the last person to get to his office, and when I walked in, the first thing I noticed was a bright blue person near the doorway. My first thought was, "MYSTIQUE" and my claws unsheathed. The blue person looked terrified, and with the sound of a popping balloon, disappeared and reappeared in the opposite corner of the room. I looked around, confused. Jean smirked. 

"He's a teleporter, Logan," she said, walking over to him. "He's our White House attacker. He has no idea what made him do it, though. We found him in an abandoned Catholic church, alone and confused."

"Now, he is one of us," the Professor continued. "We are all going to try our best to make him feel as at home as possible. Kurt, if there's any thing you need, please feel free to let any one of us know. We're your friends now."

He grinned pointed teeth shyly. "Thank you, Professor." He looked over at me and his smile faded. He gulped audibly.

I couldn't help but smirk. Smurf was afraid of me and I hadn't even been in the room over a minute. Kind of an ego booster. 

As everyone was filing out of the room, I pulled Jean aside. "We need to talk, Doc." I turned to the Professor. "You, too, Chuck."

"Logan, how many times-" the Professor tried to say, but I cut him off.

"Rogue can touch me."

Jean's eyes went wide. "Rogue can what? You mean... without hurting you? Skin on skin? Human contact?"

I nodded. "We found out accidentally last night when she stepped on my foot. She touched my hand, after that, and nothing happened. She touched one of her roommates, but it hurt just like it always does."

"Can she continue to touch you over a prolonged period of time?" the Professor inquired, hands folded together.

I nodded again. 

"Can she absorb some of your life force if she tries?" Jean wondered out loud.

I rolled my eyes. "I don't know, I don't think we were worrying about if she could hurt me if she wanted to."

"I think we need to get Rogue down to the Lab," Jean said, looking at the professor, then back at me. "We don't know what could be causing this. Something could be wrong."

"I'll get her and meet you down there," I volunteered, and left without waiting for a reply.


	7. Chapter Seven

Chapter Seven

Rogue:

"Are you going home for Christmas holidays, Kitty?" Jubilee asked at the breakfast table. "I was thinking about it. I might not."

Kitty shrugged. "I guess."

"What about you, Bobby?" I asked. 

"I might find some reasons to stay," he said, looking at me mischievously. 

I kicked him playfully underneath the table. No one asked John or me if we were going home. Every one knew every one else's story by heart here, so everyone knew I wasn't going home for Christmas because my dad kicked me out when he found out I was a mutant, and John wasn't going home because he'd never had one... before here. 

I jumped when someone's hand touched my shoulder. I turned around and saw it was Logan. 

"Doc wants to see you down in the Lab," he said, looking worried. 

I frowned. This couldn't be good. It meant that Jean thought there was something seriously wrong with me. I sighed. "Ok." I rose from the table and noticed Bobby was frowning. Probably because I was going somewhere with Logan. Never mind that someone else had told me to. I was annoyed. He was so jealous. 'Never mind that he has a reason to feel that way,' the evil voice in my head murmured to me as I pushed my chair under. 'Shut up,' I told it, getting more agitated. "See you guys later."

We walked down the hallway and got onto the elevator before we said anything. "She thinks it's bad, huh?"

"She probably just wants to make sure everything's ok," he said, trying to sound optimistic. Not something Logan was that great at. I gave him points for trying, though. When we got off and walked down the hall towards the Lab, I grabbed his hand. What if something really was wrong with me?


End file.
